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Opinion of Rehnquist, C. J.
ralles, Inc., 289 N. L. R. B. 51 (1988), enf'd, 882 F. 2d 19 (CA1 1989), and Middleboro Fire Apparatus, Inc., 234 N. L. R. B. 888, 894, enf'd, 590 F. 2d 4 (CA1 1978). It is of course true that such statements are not clear evidence of an employee's opinion about the union—and if the Board's substantive standard required clear proof of employee disaffection, it might be proper to ignore such statements altogether. But that is not the standard, and, depending on the circumstances, the statements can unquestionably be probative to some degree of the employer's good-faith reasonable doubt.
* * *
We conclude that the Board's "reasonable doubt" test for employer polls is facially rational and consistent with the Act. But the Board's factual finding that Allentown Mack Sales lacked such a doubt is not supported by substantial evidence on the record as a whole. The judgment of the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is therefore reversed, and the case is remanded with instructions to deny enforcement.
It is so ordered.
Chief Justice Rehnquist, with whom Justice O'Connor, Justice Kennedy, and Justice Thomas join, concurring in part and dissenting in part.
I concur in the judgment of the Court and in Parts I, III, and IV. However, I disagree that the National Labor Relations Board's standard is rational and consistent with the National Labor Relations Act, and I therefore dissent as to Part II.
The Board's standard for employer polls requires a showing of reasonable doubt, based on sufficient objective considerations, that the union continues to enjoy majority support. Texas Petrochemicals Corp., 296 N. L. R. B. 1057, 1061 (1989), enf'd as modified, 923 F. 2d 398 (CA5 1991); Auciello Iron Works, Inc. v. NLRB, 517 U. S. 781, 786-787 (1996);
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